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1990s

CLASS OF 1990

Susan M. Corcoran, a partner in the White Plains office of Jackson Lewis, will be the recipient of the Pro Bono Partnership’s Volunteer of the Decade Distinguished Service Award. Susan will receive her award on March 13 as part of the Pro Bono Partnership’s 10th anniversary celebration. The Partnership assists nonprofit organizations serving poor or disadvantaged individuals and families, civic groups, arts organizations, and environmental or conservation groups; provides a wide range of opportunities for attorneys in corporations and law firms to work on rewarding pro bono business and transactional matters; and particularly focuses on engaging volunteers from corporate legal departments. Susan’s community outreach efforts extend beyond the Pro Bono Partnership. She is a board member for Family Services of Westchester; serves on the council for SUNY Purchase; is a member of the New York and Connecticut Bar associations, the Women’s Bar Association of the State of New York, and the Westchester Women’s Bar Association, where she is currently co-chair of its Employment Law Committee.

Marsha S. Holloman was promoted to health science policy advisor for the Safety Policy and Communications staff in the Office of the Director, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in Silver Springs, Maryland. Marsha joined the agency in 1999 as a regulatory project manager in the Division of Antiviral Products.

Kevin F. Russo was appointed village justice for the Village of West Haverstraw in Rockland County, New York.

Harry M. Stokes was appointed inspector general for the City of Mount Vernon, New York. The Office of Inspector General for Mount Vernon was created in 2008 and is responsible for detecting, prosecuting, and deterring fraud, waste, and abuse in city government.

CLASS OF 1991

David F. Conca is working as the director of insurance for Time Warner in New York, New York.

Richard A. De Palma has joined the law firm Thompson Hine LLP as a partner in the firm’s New York office. Richard, a member of the firm’s Business Litigation and Construction practice groups, focuses his practice on the trial and hearing of civil cases. He was formerly a principal with Baker & McKenzie LLP.

Eric D. Katz, senior partner at Mazie Slater Katz & Freeman, LLC, in Roseland, New Jersey, and class counsel for the plaintiff physician class consisting of approximately 60,000 physicians, recently achieved a groundbreaking legal victory with the final settlement approval of the class action lawsuit, John Ivan Sutter, M.D., et al. v. Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey. The settlement, approved by the New Jersey Superior Court and valued at more than $39 million, requires sweeping business reforms by New Jersey’s largest managed health-care organization that will enhance the efficiency and quality of the health-care delivery system for the state’s physicians and the over 3.2 million patients who participate in the plan.

Salvatore A. Lagonia was elected president of the Westchester County Bar Association. Salvatore was sworn in at the association’s annual banquet on May 8, 2008. Salvatore maintains a law practice with an office in Yorktown Heights, New York.

CLASS OF 1992

Matthew J. Byrne was appointed undergraduate adjunct professor of law at Iona College in New Rochelle, New York. Matthew is also an adjunct professor at both Manhattan College and Dominican College. In addition, he is part of the private practice of Balsamo, Byrne, Cipriani and Ellsworth in Suffern, New York.

Thomas Christopher was named director of Arbor Commercial Mortgage at their Darien, Connecticut, office. As director, Thomas will be responsible for all of Arbor’s loan products including Fannie Mae, FHA, and CMBS. Prior to joining Arbor, Thomas held the position of banker, sales manager, for Countrywide Commercial Real Estate Finance, where he was a founding member of the company’s Advantage Loan program. As the number one sales producer in the nation, he originated 70 loans totaling $140 million within six months of production.

Jody Fay is the manager and counsel of Liberty Title Agency, LLC, in White Plains, New York.

CLASS OF 1993

Renee Seblatnigg is the president of The Future of Newcomb College, Inc., a nonprofit organization funding a donor-intent lawsuit against Tulane University to restore H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College, the oldest coordinate women’s college in a U.S. university. The plaintiffs in this lawsuit are collateral descendants and successors of the founder, Josephine Louise Newcomb, and they seek to enforce the terms of their ancestor’s will, which gave her entire fortune to maintain the college. Efforts from this case have resulted in new law in Louisiana Supreme Court on the issue of standing.

Alicia A. Weissmer-Marek and her husband, Jason, welcomed their first child, Brooke Gaetana Marek, on August 5, 2008. Alicia is working as a court clerk specialist for the New York County’s Surrogate Court.

CLASS OF 1994

Brian L. Baker joined the law firm of McCarter & English LLP as a partner in its Commercial Litigation-Debtor/Creditor practice group. Brian has focused on debtor-creditor law since 1995 and has been part of the successful reorganization of companies in the chemical, metal, retail, restaurant, temporary services, fashion, health care, and technology industries. Prior to joining McCarter English, Brian was an attorney with McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter, LLP.

Elizabeth Citrin Pober has started her own practice in Daphne, Alabama. Elizabeth recently resolved a number of Hurricane Katrina cases in Alabama and Mississippi and settled a massive sewage spill case.

Steven Riker was married on November 28, 2008, to Gloria Li, a project manager in the litigation support group of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. Steven continues to maintain his own midtown Manhattan law practice, which specializes in commercial litigation, real estate, business law, and political asylum litigation. The couple resides on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.

Mattie D. Grady-Smith retired from Westchester government employment as EEO director and various other positions after 34 years of service. Mattie works as a certified mediator with the Unified Court System, as well as a certified lemon law arbitrator with the Office of the Attorney General.

CLASS OF 1995

Peter DiChiara joined Sichenzia Ross Friedman Ference LLP in April 2008. Peter’s practice is focused on corporate and securities law, advising private companies on going public, and private and public companies on issues of corporate finance, equity and debt financings, securities law compliance, Securities Exchange Act reporting, and general corporate matters. Prior to joining the firm, Peter had over 20 years of experience in the legal and financial industry, including with the nationally-recognized firms of Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP and Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP. Peter is also a certified public accountant and had been a manager for Ernst & Young and Philip Morris Companies (now Altria). He has additionally served on the boards of both publicly-traded and nonprofit entities and is currently the deputy mayor of the Village of Mount Kisco.

David French holds the position of vice president with the Dana Holding Corporation in Maumee, Ohio.

Frank J. LaRocca was named by the New Jersey Supreme Court to the District IIA Ethics Committee.

Paul Piantino was recently promoted to the partnership at White and Williams. Paul is a partner in the Commercial Litigation Department and works out of the Paramus, New Jersey office. He concentrates in the area of civil litigation and trial practice. Paul has extensive litigation and trial experience on behalf of both plaintiffs and defendants and has achieved well-publicized success for clients in a broad range of cases, including insurance coverage and bad faith, personal injury, professional malpractice, commercial and products, and aviation and marine matters.

CLASS OF 1996

Gerard Bilotto, PhD, is working as a partner in the New York office of Bressler, Amery & Ross, P.C., where his practice focuses on intellectual property, corporate, and business law. Gerard has over a decade of experience in civil and patent litigation, focusing on biotechnology and pharmaceutical litigation, products liability litigation, commercial litigation involving polymers, pharmacology, toxicology, pharmacokinetics, and drug efficacy.

Capt. Barbara L. Duncan was appointed commander of Mt. Vernon, New York’s Special Operations Division in April 2008. Barbara, 42, filled the position left vacant by former police chief Joseph Pizzuti when he retired in April. She is the first woman appointed chief, but not the first to head the force. Barbara, a 19-year veteran of the force, has a law degree from Pace University and a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Mercy College. She became a police officer in January 1989. She was promoted to sergeant in 1994, lieutenant in 2003, and captain two years ago. Barbara has been a patrol supervisor, personnel officer, commanding officer of the Training Unit, executive officer of the Support Services Division, and now with SOD, which includes Internal Affairs and Community Affairs.

Christine M. Hilla has been named special counsel to the New York office of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, a national law firm with offices in New York, Los Angeles, and Miami. Christine concentrates in real estate transactions and specializes in the law of condominiums, cooperatives, and fractional ownership. She has expertise in matters relating to the planning, structuring, financing, development, formation, registration, and management of mixed-use, commercial, and residential developments in New York. She represents builders, lenders, and owners in fee and leasehold developments and she has extensive experience in contract negotiations, closings, construction, and brokerage issues. Christine is a commissioned officer in the United States Navy Reserve and recently completed an overseas deployment supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Michael (“Mark”) McIntosh Jr. is working as deputy general counsel for the White House Council on Environmental Quality in Washington, D.C.

John Williams has been promoted to director, Energy Analysis, at the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Prior to joining NYSERDA, John was a policy analyst at the Pace Energy and Climate Center. John visited the Law School’s campus on September 24 for a noontime brown bag lunch presentation as part of this year’s lecture series for environmental law students.

CLASS OF 1997

Todd R. Harris joined the law firm of Adorno & Yoss as a partner in their New York and New Jersey offices. Todd’s practice focuses on insurance services including complex litigation and coverage disputes.

Denise T. O’Donnell was married on September 6, 2008, to Tom Walsh. Denise has a private practice that concentrates on the areas of corporate law, transactional law, wills, trusts and estates, as well as real estate law.

Maureen Shea Whelan, Esq. – IN MEMORIUM

CLASS OF 1998

Scott Anderson is working as an assistant United States Attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Darryl Carbonaro accepted the position of assistant general counsel with Bank of America, N.A., supporting one of the structured finance groups in their San Francisco office. Darryl’s move followed nine years of private practice, first with White & Case LLP and then with Dechert LLP.

Ralph J. Crispino joined the New York City law firm of Abelman, Frayne & Schwab as an associate. Ralph specializes on patent law.

Christopher Glaser is working as an associate in the Arlington, Virginia, law office of Bean Kinny & Korman. Christopher’s practice focuses on commercial and general civil ligation with a concentration in general business disputes, non-compete covenants, business dissolution, and real estate matters.
Keith M. Goldstein is a principal attorney at Lavelle & Finn, LLP, and director of the firm’s Private Equity and Strategic Business Counseling practice. Keith concentrates in counseling institutional and angel investors, wealthy family groups, issuers, founders and senior management in investment transactions, mergers and acquisitions, pre-event planning, strategic business development, joint ventures, buy-sell arrangements, executive compensation, and stock option planning. In addition, Keith is a member of the adjunct faculty of Albany Law School and teaches corporate transactional practice. Keith has authored several articles on topics of business law, which have been published in the Business Review and has lectured to the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants, Schenectady County Business Incubator, and other groups on legal matters. Keith is a member of the board of directors of The Arts Center of the Capital Region, the Rensselaer Gateway Development Corporation, and the Pace Law School Alumni Association, as well as the investment committee of the Rensselaer County Regional Chamber of Commerce, Economic Development Partnership.

Edwin L. Keating III was named partner at the Balitmore, Maryland, law firm Anderson Coe & King LLP in February 2008. Edwin’s practice includes professional malpractice, professional licensing matters, commercial disputes, premises liability, and general civil litigation.

Beverly Rogers, the founding partner of Rogers & Tartaro, LLP, recently celebrated the seventh year of her firm. The milestone was marked with a party in Ridgefield, Connecticut, attended by friends, clients, and local town officials. Rogers & Tartaro has offices in White Plains, New York, and Ridgefield and focuses on employment law, litigation, and estate planning.

Annette Y. Stewart recently did volunteer work for the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. She currently has a private practice in Fresh Meadows, New York.

CLASS OF 1999

Matthew Brotmann has recently accepted a new position as special advisor on policy and public information for the New York Attorney General’s Office. Since his graduation from Pace, he has worked as an assistant district attorney for Westchester County, while also making major contributions to the life of the Law School. Matthew is the co-founder and director of the Pace International Criminal Court Moot Competition, which just celebrated its fifth anniversary in January. This year, due to its successful record as the first-ever moot competition based on the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, the Pace Moot was selected by the American Society of International Law and the Government of the Netherlands as the North American Regional Round for the Pace/ICLN Moot, the final rounds for which will be held in The Hague in February.

Cinzia Cioffi is working as an associate in the law firm of Teich Groh in their Lawrenceville, New Jersey, office. Cinzia specializes in the practice areas of adoption, custody law, domestic violence law, and matrimonial law.

Lydia Cotz served as an attorney representing the Ramapough Indian tribe in a lawsuit involving a state park ranger being indicted on charges that he recklessly shot a Ramapough Indian in 2006 in Mahwah during a row over ATV riding. An indictment returned on September 18, 2008, charged the ranger with reckless manslaughter.

Donna Drumm joined Encore Discovery Solutions, a knowledge-based provider of electronic discovery and related services. In her new role, Donna will act as a consultant responsible for advising Encore’s clients on best practices and effective solutions in electronic discovery, Web hosting, and related services. Donna joins Encore’s team with more than seven years at Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP where she was involved in litigation for major international clients, as well as an additional 20 years experience in financial and consulting services.

Lorraine Gallagher has been named partner in the White Plains office of Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP.

Major Michael Andrew Salvatore Goba is presently stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. Michael recently completed his eighth year as a U.S. Army JAG. In addition, he completed his second tour in both Baghdad and Taji, Iraq. Previously, Michael spent time as a JAG in Bosnia, Kosovo, and three years in Germany.

Joseph McGovern has been named partner in the White Plains office of Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP.

Richard A. Nelke was named partner of the Paramus, New Jersey, law firm Melli Guerin & Wall in December 2007. Richard’s practice focuses on civil litigation, insurance fraud, and defense.